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Monthly Archives: January 2012

What is on Dr. Earle’s agenda during The World Economic Forum at Davos? “Let’s put the ocean on the balance sheet.” Pointing out that the ocean is the real world bank, she hopes to remind the participants where the real focus should be as they look at solutions to improve the state of the world.…

What is IUCN? One of Mission Blue’s key partners, The International Union for the Conservation of Nature has produced this stunning video about their global programs and mission. Clearly planet ocean is a better place with organizations such as IUCN working every day to promote a just world that values and conserves nature.…

THIMUN, The Hague International Model United Nations Conference is an annual event in which over 3,400 young delegates from around the world gather in The Hague, Netherlands, making it the largest high school Model UN conference in the world.
Dr. Earle was pleased to make a keynote speech at the opening ceremonies.…

January 23, 2012
“This week I’ll be speaking about ocean issues to 3100 high school kids from 200 countries at the Hague, simulating UN procedures with real UN delegates participating.
Andrew Pudvah and Enric Sala arranged for me to give the keynote talk at the Hague today to schoolkids brought in by the THIMUN Foundation (The Hague International Model United Nations) to simulate UN proceedings, this year (their 44th) focusing on Oceans and Seas — 3100 kids, 200 countries, immensely inspirational.
International justice is a major topic at the Hague, and I thought it appropriate to make a pitch for justice for nature, especially the Blue.”
Credit: Dr. Sylvia Earle
Edited by Deb Castellana
…

By Deb Castellana
Searching for “Wisdom” may seem like an odd name for Dr. Earle’s recent expedition to Midway Atoll National Wildlife Refuge within the Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument, but actually, “Wisdom” is the name of the oldest known Laysan albatross, and it was one of the team’s goals to meet her. This grand dame is at least 60 years old and is still nesting on Midway Atoll. And yes, the expedition team found her (see photo at right.) Like Dr. Earle, “Wisdom” has witnessed profound changes in her years surveying our ocean planet. Since she was hatched (and coincidentally since Dr. Earle first began to scuba dive) in the early 1950’s, the ocean has changed in fundamental ways. From plastic pollution and marine debris to ocean acidification and dwindling food supplies from overfishing, Dr.…

Galveston, Texas
From the shores of Hawaii to the coast of Texas, America’s beaches constantly serve as the recreational hubs of our vacations. Sunbathing, surfing, sand volleyball, and swimming are only a few of the activities that inch their way into our vacationing day dreams and serve as relief from the drone of the nine-to-five job. But what happens when we begin to take advantage of the beauty of the shore and let carelessness creep in?
A recent article by the Texas General Land Office in Galveston’s The Daily News explains that today the composition of the trash being found on Texas beaches is no longer trash from ocean-going vessels but is instead the trash left behind by beach-goers. The good news for beach lovers is that it is not too late to do something to protect our beaches.…

California, USA
Photo: Gilliane Shayman
“California has taken the lead in understanding that the ocean really matters,” says Dr. Earle. “We know how to take from the ocean. California is giving back by establishing a network of protected areas.”
California’s four National Marine Sanctuaries (Channel Islands, Cordell Bank, Gulf of the Farallones, and Monterey Bay) cover almost 9,500 square miles of Pacific Ocean. In addition to these, more State Marine Protected Areas are added under the regulation of the California Department of Fish and Game. The Marine Life Protection Act (MLPA) of 1999 directed the state to redesign it’s system of marine protected areas to function as a network in order to increase effectiveness in protecting coastal marine life, habitats and marine ecosystems.…

Durham, NC
Photo: Bryce Groark
Dr. Earle will present a free public seminar, “Sustainable Seas, the Vision, the Reality,” at 12:30 p.m. EST, Tuesday, Jan. 17, at the Duke University Marine Lab in Beaufort, N.C. The event is the 2012 John Sutherland Memorial Seminar.
The free seminar will take place in the Marine Lab Auditorium.
Good news for those who can’t be there – the seminar will be available remotely at http://nsoe.capture.duke.edu.
Duke’s Chapter of the Coastal Society will host a Blue Drinks Social with Dr. Earle from 7 p.m. to 9 p.m. at the Maritime Museum in Beaufort. The social is also free and open to the public.
We bet that Dr. Earle might even share a story or two from her recent inspiring visit to
Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument at Midway Atoll.…

Join Dr. Sylvia Earle and wildlife artist & ocean conservationist Wyland as they explore Papahānaumokuākea Marine National Monument at Midway Atoll.
These are some of the first pictures to come from the expedition to the remote island chain. Dr. Earle was instrumental in the designation of these islands as a World Heritage Site, but this is her first actual visit, as it is for Wyland.
We can see that the group was fortunate enough to encounter sharks, the critically endangered Hawaiian Monk Seal, as well as nesting Laysan Albatrosses. Even given the great distance to major population centers from Midway, it is plagued by plastic pollution, most of it originating from sources on land. One study showed that 97.5% of Laysan Albatross chicks had plastic in their stomachs, and it is documented that forty percent die from it.…